President Of Russian Tennis Federation Fined And Suspended For Calling Venus And Serena Williams ”BROTHERS”

The President of Russian Tennis Federation, Shamil Tarpischev has been fined $25,000 and suspended for one year by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) for calling Venus and Serena Williams “the Williams Brothers.” He made the comment during a Russian late-night talk show and also added that they were frightening to look at.

When quizzed over his derogatory comment, he said it was an innocent joke.

“I understand now that my remarks were wrong and could be construed as discriminatory by the public,” he said

The ban will prevent Tarpischev from participating in all WTA events for the next year and he might also lose his post as Kremlin Cup chairman which he has held for about 20 years.